This invention relates generally to an electronic timepiece having supplemental functions and more particularly, to an electronic timepiece having a function for recording and playing back the user's voice in association with a function. By "voice" it is meant all sounds such as the human voice, music or synthesized sounds. Currently, electronic timepieces although small are developed to have multifunctions such as an alarm function or a timer function. However, the warning or notice technique of these functions is no more than a sound determined by the manufacturer. Users must use the sound incorporated in the timepiece whether or not they find it suitable and pleasant or not. Further, there is a disadvantage that the user must recognize the sound and recall from his mental memory what the sound means. The disadvantages stated above can be eliminated in an electronic timepiece by incorporation therein of a recording and playback function. Thus, the user's voice may be stored in memory and be reproduced as a voice at the suitable time to announce, for example, the alarm function. In such a small device little memory capacity is available and therefore should not be wasted. To begin recording, the electronic timepiece requires some starting signals. However, it is troublesome for the users to supply these signals by, for example, operating an external switch. When this is done the time elapsed from applying the starting signal until talking is initiated results in a waste of memory storage capacity.
What is needed is an electronic timepiece having a voice recording and playback capability which begins recording without troublesome switching operations by the operator and with little waste of memory storage capacity.